VOLUME 50 | ISSUE 11
A MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF THE
ARIZONA COMMISSION ON THE ARTS
FEATURED NEWS
A3C State Tour 2017
November 29 - December 14, 2017
The Arizona Commission on the Arts is partnering with Arizona the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to engage Arizona communities in discussions of arts education and advocacy during a statewide tour this Winter.

These meetings are free and open to the public. Teachers, teaching artists, community arts organizations, administrators, parents, and policymakers are encouraged to attend. Data collected through these community convenings will be reviewed and communicated to education and state leaders.
Flagstaff
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
5:30 – 7:30 pm
Flagstaff Family Resource Center
Prescott
Thursday, November 30, 2017
5:30 – 7:30 pm
Prescott College
Yuma
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
5:30 – 7:30 pm
Yuma Art Center
Miami
Thursday, December 7, 2017
5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Miami Junior Senior High School
Tucson
Tuesday, December 12
5:15 pm – 7:15 pm
Temple of Music and Arts
Coolidge
Wednesday, December 13, 2017
5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Artisan Village
Scottsdale
Thursday, December 14, 2017
5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts
AZ ArtWorker Reception | Spanish-Language Creative Writing Readings
First Friday, December 1, 2017 | Downtown Phoenix
Acompáñanos el primer viernes del mes de diciembre a escuchar las historias de los estudiantes del segundo taller de escritura creativa en español en Palabras Librería, gracias al apoyo de Arizona Commision on the Arts.

Join us at Palabras Bilingual Bookstore in downtown Phoenix, on First Friday, December 1, 2017, for a public reception featuring participants of a Spanish-language creative writing workshop series led by local writer Ofelia Montelongo and sponsored by the Arts Commission’s AZ ArtWorker initiative.
AZArts Best of 2017 (as decided by you!)
Share yours by Friday, December 15
Next month's newsletter will include a best of 2017 feature and we need your help to pull it together!

Click below to share your personal favorite or most memorable Arizona arts experience for 2017! Gotta a picture or video? You can share those too!
Photos (left to right): art by artist Brent Q, courtesy Arts for All, inc; Tucson International Mariachi Conference 2017, courtesy La Frontera; All Souls Proces-sion, Rick Meinecke, 2015; artists Leonor Aispuro and Oliverio Balcells, photo by Alonso Parra; Amanda Rambert at the 2017 Poetry Out Loud State Finals.
NEWS
UA Poetry Center Awarded $500,000 Art for Justice Grant
The University of Arizona Poetry Center has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the Art for Justice Fund. The grant will fund a three-year project that will commission new work from leading writers in conversation with the topic of mass incarceration in the United States, with the goal of creating new awareness and empathy through presentation and publication. 
Senate Bill Maintains Funding for NEA
On November 20 the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee released their bill to fund the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The bill proposes level-funding ($150 million) for both the NEA and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Congress has until December 8th to agree on funding levels for the entire federal government. Current funding for the NEA ($150 million) will remain in place until that deadline.
Herberger Theater Center Welcomes Three New Resident Companies
At a press conference held on November 13, Herberger Theater Center officially welcomed Arizona Opera, Arizona Broadway Theatre, and Childsplay as resident companies.beginning with the in the 2018-19 season. They join the Herberger’s already impressive slate of resident companies: Arizona Theatre Company, Center Dance Ensemble, and iTheatre Collaborative.
Arizona Literary Artists Awarded NEA Fellowships
On November 16, 2017, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced the Fiscal Year 2018 recipients of their Creative Writing and Literary Translation Fellowships. Among the recipients are three Arizonans: Jane Armstrong of Flagstaff, Elizabeth Evans of Tucson, and Todd Fredson of Scottsdale.
Phoenix Conservatory of Music
On November 9, Phoenix Conservatory of Music, a nonprofit that provides affordable, accessible, and high-quality music education to metro-Phoenix youth, received a 2017 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program (NAHYP) Award. PCM students Lourde Childs , Michael Rodriguez, and Marcus Wolf traveled to Washington, DC, to perform at the awards ceremony.
Photo: Lourde Childs and Michael Rodriquez. Photo by Steven E. Purcell
RESEARCH
Economic Impact of Arts in Rural Communities
Published by the National Endowment for the Arts in November 2017, "Rural Arts, Design, & Innovation in America: Research Findings from the Rural Establishment Innovation Survey" provides hitherto unavailable insights into how arts and design can beautify a place and attract new residents and businesses.
Photo: Research for dance performance piece by Delisa Myles of Prescott.
State Policy Pilot Program: Summary Findings and Final Report
Americans for the Arts' three-year State Policy Pilot Program (SP 3) concluded in Summer 2017. The findings were shared at the State Policy Pilot Program Summit, held in Denver, CO, in November 2017. This summary report evaluates the initiative and concludes with observations of 4 macro-themes, 5 policy trends, 6 advocacy trends, and recommendations for future work. 
RESOURCES
National Initiative Directory
Americans for the Arts is working to compile a complete directory of individuals and organizations that support or provide programs and services, or information and resources in or about the arts for military service members, veterans and their families. 
Currently, the directory is in PDF form. As the directory grows, they plan to build a searchable online database of listings. Would you like to be included? You can submit your listing online, free of charge.
Photo courtesy of Heard Museum
Communicating about Arts Controversies
Although arts controversies don't flare up often, when they do occur they can ignite a lot of media attention and can present high-stakes public relations, programmatic and political challenges.The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) has released a new edition of their Practical Advocate series, designed especially for cultural advocates. Communicating about Arts Controversies is a new resource to help the arts & culture field address controversial artworks.
RESOURCES
NEA accepting applications to develop community-wide reading programs
NEA Big Read is accepting applications from non-profit organizations around the nation to develop community-wide reading programs between September 2018 and June 2019.
Organizations selected to participate in the program receive a grant ($5,000-$15,000), access to educational and promotional materials, and online training resources. Approximately 75 organizations from across the country will be selected.
Arizona Biennial 2018 at the Tucson Museum of Art
All Arizona artists over 18 years of age working in any media are welcome to submit their work to be considered for the Arizona Biennial 2018 , the oldest running state-wide juried exhibition featuring exclusively Arizona artists. The work juried into the exhibition will be selected by guest curator Rebecca R. Hart, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Denver Art Museum, entirely from digital images or from video submissions.
USArtists International 2017-2018
USArtists International supports performances by U.S. dance, music, and theater ensembles and solo artists invited to perform at important cultural festivals & performing arts marketplaces anywhere in the world outside the United States and its territories. In 2016-2017, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation awarded more than $740,000 to performing artists through the USArtists International program.
Atlanta's Full Radius Dance performed in Spain with support from USArtists International. Photo: © marcosGpunto/Centro Dramático Nacional.
Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust Seeking Next Resident Scholar
Through a paid two-year commitment (2018-2020), Resident Scholars examine issues and challenges in the region and contribute to advancing Piper Trust’s mission of improving well-being for all in Maricopa County. The intent of the program is to provide a dynamic environment to gain experience that enhances their career paths, broadens their expertise, and ultimately supports them in their pursuits as our future leaders.
City of Avondale’s Art Sponsorship Program Grants
City of Avondale’s Art Sponsorship Program, offered through the Avondale Municipal Art Committee, provides funding to non-profit or educational organizations to support and enhance arts education and activities in Avondale. Successful applicants could be awarded up to $1,000 for art enrichment programs, special events or community projects that serve the Avondale community.
Holiday Art Bazaar | Yuma Art Center
Yuma Art Center is now accepting applications for booths at the annualHoliday Art Bazaar. Artists will be provided with one 8 foot table and 2 chairs. Each year the bazaar feature area artists showing a variety of works for sale, ranging from jewelry and pottery, to photography and paintings. The event will kick off in the afternoon and will close shortly after the Dorothy Young Light Parade turns onto to Main Street.
Proposals invited for spark! Mesa’s Festival of Creativity
Mesa Arts Center is currently accepting applications for their spark! Festival of Creativity. Proposals may be submitted for installations/hands-on arts engagements that will be able to be experienced in an outdoor setting, either on hard surface or grass. Proposed work must be available for public interaction throughout, or at repeated intervals, during the two days of the festival. Proposed work must be designed to be experienced in both daytime and nighttime environments. 
Call for College Student Artwork | Governor’s Arts Awards
Arizona Citizens for the Arts seeks a work of art, created in the last two years, that will act as the official image of the 2017 Governor’s Arts Awards, featured on the cover of the 37th annual Governor’s Arts Awards program as wells as formal invitations.

The work should celebrate artistry, culture and unique characteristics of Arizona as the artist sees them.
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IMAGINE AN ARIZONA WHERE EVERYONE
CAN PARTICIPATE IN AND EXPERIENCE THE ARTS
Arizona Commission on the Arts | (602) 771-6501 | info@azarts.gov | www.azarts.gov